Connector

ABSTRACT

A connector is provided with a cable that includes a conductor and an insulation, connector bodies that are provided on one ends in an extending direction of the cable, and a cover unit that covers and integrates each of the one ends of the cable and each of the connector bodies. The cable includes a first cohesion unit provided on a surface of the insulation at each of one ends over an entire circumference around the extending direction of the cable, and fixed to the cover unit so as to be detachable by cohesive fracture.

TECHNICAL HELD

The present disclosure relates to a connector.

BACKGROUND ART

Patent Document 1 discloses a connector including: a connector body onthe inside of which a contact pin is housed; a cord having one endconnected to the contact pin; and a body covering the circumferencesurface of the connector body and the cord.

PRIOR ART DOCUMENT Patent Document

Patent Document 1: JP H8-055649 A

SUMMARY OF INVENTION Subjects to be Solved by the Invention

However, in the connector, oil resistance is not considered, and hence,for example, when the connector is used in a machine tool that uses alot of oil such as lubricating oil, the oil may pass between the cordand the body and flow into the connector body, causing a failure such asmalfunction.

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a connector havinghigh oil resistance.

Means for Solving the Subjects

An example of a connector according to the present disclosure isprovided with: a cable that includes a conductor and an insulationcovering the conductor; a connector body that is provided on one end inan extending direction of the cable, and on the inside of which aterminal connected with the conductor of the cable is housed; and acover unit that covers and integrates the one end of the cable and theconnector body. The cable includes a cohesion unit provided on a surfaceof the insulation at the one end over the entire circumference aroundthe extending direction of the cable, and fixed to the cover unit so asto be detachable by cohesive fracture.

Effects of the Invention

According to the connector, the cable includes a cohesion unit providedon a surface of the insulation at the one end over the entirecircumference around the extending direction of the cable, and fixed tothe cover unit so as to be detachable by cohesive fracture. Thiscohesion unit makes it possible to prevent the oil from entering theinside of the connector body through the space between the cable and thecover unit for a long time, and achieve a connector having high oilresistance.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a connector according to an embodimentof the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II-II in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an end of a cable of the connector in FIG.1.

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing the end of the cable for explaining afirst modification of the connector in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing the end of the cable for explaining asecond modification of the connector in FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a plan view showing the end of the cable for explaining athird modification of the connector in FIG. 1.

FIG. 7 is a plan view showing the end of the cable for explaining afourth modification of the connector in FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is a plan view showing the end of the cable for explaining afifth modification of the connector in FIG. 1.

MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, an example of the present disclosure will be described withreference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description,terms indicating specific directions or positions (e.g., terms including“up,” “down,” “right,” and “left”) will be used as necessary, but theuse of those terms is to facilitate understanding of the presentdisclosure with reference to the drawings, and the technical scope ofthe present disclosure is not limited by the meanings of those terms.The following description is essentially mere illustration and does notintend to restrict the present disclosure, its application, or its use.Further, the drawings are schematic, and the ratio of each dimension, orthe like, does not necessarily match an actual one.

As shown in FIG. 1, a connector 1 according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure includes a cable 10, connector bodies 20, 30 eachprovided at one end in an extending direction of the cable 10, and acover unit 40 that integrates the cable 10 and the connector bodies 20,30. In this embodiment, as an example, a first connector body 20 as aplug connector and a second connector body 30 as a socket connector areprovided at both ends of the cable 10 in the extending direction,respectively.

The cable 10 has a substantially circular shape on a plane orthogonal tothe extending direction thereof as shown in FIG. 1, and the cable 10includes a conductor 11 and an insulation 12 covering the conductor 11as shown in FIG. 2. The conductor 11 is made of a conductive metal suchas copper, and the insulation 12 is made of, for example, polyvinylchloride resin (PVC resin).

At a first end 101 of the cable 10 on the first connector body 20 sidein the extending direction of the cable 10, a cohesion unit 13, fixed tothe cover unit 40 is provided so as to be detachable by the cohesivefracture. The cohesion unit 13 is an example of a first cohesion unit.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, the cohesion unit 13 is provided inthe insulation 12 of the first end 101 that is one end of the cable 10,and provided on the bottom surface of a recess 50 extending over theentire circumference around the extending direction of the cable 10.That is, the cohesion unit 13 is provided on the surface of theinsulation 12 at the first end 101 of the cable 10 over the entirecircumference around the extending direction of the cable 10. Thecohesion unit 13 is disposed apart from an end 121 on the first end 101side of the insulation 12 of the cable 10 along the extending directionof the cable 10, in a direction away from the first connector body 20.

The cohesion unit 13 is a portion where the insulation 12 of the cable10 and the cover unit 40 are joined, and a portion where molecules oratoms of the material of the insulation 12 or the material of the coverunit 40 are bonded by a cohesive force. In other words, the cohesionunit 13 is a portion where the insulation 12 of the cable 10 and thecover unit 40 are fixed so firmly that, when the insulation 12 of thecable 10 and the cover unit 40 are tried to be peeled off, cohesivefracture occurs in the insulation 12 of the cable 10 with respect to thecover unit 40.

In the connector 1, for example, the cohesion unit 13 is formed byforming a band-shaped recess 50 on the surface of the insulation 12 ofthe cable 10 over the entire circumference around the extendingdirection of the cable 10, and heating the bottom surface of the recess50 at 180 to 200 degrees Celsius for 1 to 60 seconds.

In FIG. 3, the first connector body 20 and the cover unit 40 areomitted.

Further, on each side of the recess 50 in the extending direction of thecable 10, there is provided a protrusion 51 extending from the surfaceof the insulation 12 adjacent to the recess 50 in a directionintersecting the extending direction of the cable. The protrusion 51extends over the entire circumference around the extending direction ofthe cable 10 and has a substantially rectangular annular shape on aplane orthogonal to the extending direction. A first additional cohesionunit 52 is provided on the side surface of the protrusion 51 and therecess 50, facing the first connector body 20. The first additionalcohesion unit 52 is an example of a second cohesion unit.

The first additional cohesion unit 52 is provided on the side surface ofthe protrusion 51 facing the first connector body 20 over the entirecircumference around the extending direction of the cable 10, and isfixed to the cover unit 40 so as to be detachable by cohesive fracture.

Further, similarly to the cohesion unit 13, the first additionalcohesion unit 52 is a portion where the insulation 12 of the cable 10and the cover unit 40 are joined, and a portion where molecules or atomsof the material of the insulation 12 or the material of the cover unit40 are bonded by a cohesive force. That is, the first additionalcohesion unit 52 is a portion where the insulation 12 of the cable 10and the cover unit 40 are fixed so firmly that, when the insulation 12of the cable 10 and the cover unit 40 are tried to be peeled off,cohesive fracture occurs in the insulation 12 of the cable 10 withrespect to the cover unit 40.

Moreover, a second additional cohesion unit 53 is provided on thesurface of the protrusion 51 excluding the side surface facing the firstconnector body 20, and on the surface excluding the bottom surface ofthe recess 50 and the side surface facing the first connector body 20,and is fixed to the cover unit 40 so as to be detachable by cohesivefracture. The second additional cohesion unit 53 is an example of athird cohesion unit.

Similarly to the cohesion unit 13 and the first additional cohesion unit52, the second additional cohesion unit 53 is a portion where theinsulation 12 of the cable 10 and the cover unit 40 are joined, and is aportion where molecules or atoms of the material of the insulation 12 orthe material of the cover unit 40 are bonded by a cohesive force, andthe insulation 12 of the cable 10 and the cover unit 40 are fixed sofirmly that, when the insulation 12 of the cable 10 and the cover unit40 are tried to be peeled off, cohesive fracture occurs in theinsulation 12 of the cable 10 with respect to the cover unit 40.

Although not shown, the cohesion unit 13, the first additional cohesionunit 52, and the second additional cohesion unit 53 are also provided ata second end 102 as at the first end 101, the second end 102 being theother end of the cable 10 on the second connector body 30 side in theextending direction of the cable 10.

As shown in FIG. 2, the first connector body 20 includes an insulatinghousing 21 and terminals 22 (i.e., plug terminals) housed inside thehousing 21 and connected to the conductor 11 of the cable 10. The firstconnector body 20 has a substantially cylindrical shape, and is disposedin series with the first end 101, on the first connector body 20 side inthe extending direction of the cable 10, along the extending directionof a center line CL of the cable 10.

Although not shown, similarly to the first connector body 20, the secondconnector body 30 also includes a housing 21 and terminals 22 (i.e.,socket terminals) housed inside the housing 21 and connected to theconductor 11 of the cable 10. The second connector body 30 has asubstantially cylindrical shape and is disposed in series with thesecond end 102, on the second connector body 30 side in the extendingdirection of the cable 10, along the extending direction of a centerline CL of the cable 10.

The cover unit 40 is made of, for example, polybutylene terephthalateresin (PBT resin), and as shown in FIG. 2, the cover unit 40 covers thefirst end 101 of the cable 10 and the end 201 of the first connectorbody 20 on the cable 10 side in the extending direction of the firstconnector body 20, to integrate the cable 10 and the first connectorbody 20.

In the connector 1, the cover unit 40 is formed by, for example, moldingthe PBT resin. At this time, the PBT resin is caused to flow from thefirst connector body 20 side toward the cable 10 side, and is curedwhile covering the cohesion unit 13, the first additional cohesion unit52, and the second additional cohesion unit 53. The first additionalcohesion unit 52 is disposed on an upstream surface with respect to theflow of the PBT resin when the cover unit 40 of each protrusion 51 isbeing molded (in other words, the side surface of the protrusion 51facing the first connector body 20).

As shown in FIG. 1, the second connector body 30 is also integrated withthe cable 10 by the cover unit 40, similarly to the first connector body20.

In the connector 1, the cable 10 includes the cohesion unit 13 providedon the surface of the insulation 12 (i.e., the bottom surface of therecess 50) at each of the one ends 101, 102 of the cable 10 over theentire circumference around the extending direction of the cable 10. Inthe cohesion unit 13, the insulation 12 of the cable 10 and the coverunit 40 are fixed so firmly that, when the insulation 12 of the cable 10and the cover unit 40 are tried to be peeled off, cohesive fractureoccurs in the insulation 12 of the cable 10 with respect to the coverunit 40. The cohesion unit 13 makes it possible to prevent oil fromentering the inside of each of the connector bodies 20, 30 through thespace between the cable 10 and the cover unit 40 for a long time, andachieve the connector 1 having high oil resistance.

The cable 10 includes the first additional cohesion unit 52 provided ona surface facing each of the connector bodies 20, 30 and extending inthe direction intersecting the extending direction of the cable 10, andis fixed to the cover unit 40 so as to be detachable by cohesivefracture. The first additional cohesion unit 52 makes it possible toprevent oil from entering the inside of each of the connector bodies 20,30 through the space between the cable 10 and the cover unit 40 for alonger time, and achieve the connector 1 having higher oil resistance.

The cable 10 includes the protrusion 51 extending from the surface ofthe insulation 12, adjacent to the cohesion unit 13 in the extendingdirection of the cable 10, in the direction intersecting the extendingdirection of the cable 10. The protrusion 51 includes the firstadditional cohesion unit 52 disposed on the side surface of theprotrusion 51 facing the connector body 20, and the second additionalcohesion unit 53 provided on the surface excluding the side surface ofthe protrusion 51 facing the connector body 20, and fixed to the coverunit 40 so as to be detachable by cohesive fracture. By providing theprotrusion 51 that includes the first additional cohesion unit 52 andthe second additional cohesion unit 53, it is possible to prevent oilfrom entering the inside of each of the connector bodies 20, 30 throughthe space between the cable 10 and the cover unit 40 for a longer time,and achieve the connector 1 having higher oil resistance.

Further, the cohesion unit 13 is disposed apart from the end 121 of theinsulation 12 at each of the one ends 101, 102 of the cable 10 along theextending direction of the cable 10 from each of the connector bodies20, 30. Thereby, regardless of the cutting accuracy at the end 121 ofthe insulation 12 of the cable 10, the cohesion unit 13, the firstadditional cohesion unit 52, and the second additional cohesion unit 53can be accurately disposed at desired positions.

Note that the protrusion 51 is not limited to the case where theprotrusion 51 has a substantially rectangular annular shape on a planeorthogonal to the extending direction. For example, as shown in FIG. 4,the protrusion 51 may have an annular shape in which the tip apart fromthe cable 10 in a direction orthogonal to the extending direction of thecable 10 (in other words, the tip of the protrusion 51 on the outer sidein the radial direction of the cable 10) is curved.

Further, the width of the protrusion 51 (i.e., the length in theextending direction of the cable 10) can be changed in a freelyselectable manner. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the protrusion 51may be configured to have a width W2 smaller than a width W1 of theprotrusion 51 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.

The number of cohesion units 13 is not limited to one, and a pluralityof cohesion units 13 may be provided as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, forexample.

In the cable 10 shown in FIG. 6, two cohesion units 13 are providedwhich are arranged side by side in the extending direction of the cable10. The protrusions 51 are provided on both sides of each cohesion unit13 in the extending direction of the cable 10. The protrusion 51 betweenthe two cohesion units 13 has, on a plane orthogonal to the extendingdirection of the protrusion 51, a substantially rectangular annularshape in which a corner of the outer tip in the radial direction of thecable 10 is chamfered to form an inclined surface 511, and has a widthW3 larger than the width W1 of each of the other two protrusions 51.

Further, the cable 10 of FIG. 7 is provided with three cohesion units 13arranged side by side in the extending direction of the cable 10. Theprotrusions 51 are provided on both sides of each cohesion unit 13 inthe extending direction of the cable 10. In the cable 10 of FIG. 7, allthe protrusions 51 have the same width W1. Further, the protrusion 51between two adjacent cohesion units 13 has, on a plane orthogonal to theextending direction of the protrusion 51, a substantially rectangularannular shape in which a corner of the outer tip in the radial directionof the cable 10 is chamfered to form an inclined surface 511. Of the twoinclined surfaces 511, the inclined surface 511 facing the connectorbody 20 (i.e., the inclined surface 511 on the right side in FIG. 7)forms the first additional cohesion unit 52, and the inclined surface511 not facing the connector body 20 (i.e., the inclined surface 511 onthe left side in FIG. 7) forms the second additional cohesion unit 53.

The protrusion 51 can be omitted as shown in FIG. 8. In this case, thefirst additional cohesion unit 52 is disposed on the side surface of therecess 50 facing the first connector body 20 (i.e., the side surfacefarther from the first connector body 20 on the center line CL of thecable 10), and second additional cohesion unit 53 is disposed on theside surface of the recess 50 not facing the first connector body 20(i.e., the side surface closer to the first connector body 20 on thecenter line CL of the cable 10).

The depth of the recess 50 (i.e., a linear distance L (shown in FIG. 3)from the surface of the insulation 12 to the bottom surface of therecess 50) can be changed in a freely selectable manner. For example,the recess 50 can be configured such that the surface of the insulation12 and the bottom surface of the recess 50 are located substantiallyflush with each other, and the recess 50 may be omitted practically. Inthis case, the cohesion unit 13 can be formed, for example, by formingfine unevenness on the surface of the insulation 12 instead of therecess 50 and heating the portion where the fine unevenness is formed.For example, when the recess 50 is configured such that the surface ofthe insulation 12 and the bottom surface of the recess 50 are locatedsubstantially flush with each other and the protrusion 51 is omitted,the first additional cohesion unit 52 and the second additional cohesionunit 53 are also omitted. Further, for example, when the recess 50 isconfigured such that the surface of the insulation 12 and the bottomsurface of the recess 50 are located substantially flush with each otherand the protrusion 51 is provided, the first additional cohesion unit 52and the second additional cohesion unit 53 are each provided only on theprotrusion 51.

As described above, various aspects of the present disclosure have beendescribed in detail with reference to the drawings, and finally, variousaspects of the present disclosure will be described. In the followingdescription, reference numerals will also be provided as examples.

A connector 1 of a first aspect of the present disclosure is providedwith: a cable 10 that includes a conductor 11 and an insulation 12covering the conductor 11; connector bodies 20, 30 that are provided onone ends 101, 102 in an extending direction of the cable 10, and on theinside of which a terminal 22 connected with the conductor 11 of thecable 10 is housed; and a cover unit 40 that covers and integrates eachof the one ends 101, 102 of the cable 10 and each of the connectorbodies 20, 30. The cable 10 includes a first cohesion unit 13 providedon the surface of the insulation 12 at each of one ends 101, 102 overthe entire circumference around the extending direction of the cable 10,and fixed to the cover nit 40 so as to be detachable by cohesivefracture.

According to the connector 1 of the first aspect, the cable 10 includesthe first cohesion unit 13 provided on the surface of the insulation 12at each of one ends 101, 102 of the cable 10 over the entirecircumference around the extending direction of the cable 10. In thefirst cohesion unit 13, the insulation 12 of the cable 10 and the coverunit 40 are fixed so firmly that, when the insulation 12 of the cable 10and the cover unit 40 are tried to be peeled off, cohesive fractureoccurs in the insulation 12 of the cable 10 with respect to the coverunit 40. The first cohesion unit 13 makes it possible to prevent oilfrom entering the inside of each of the connector bodies 20, 30 throughthe space between the cable 10 and the cover unit 40 for a long time,and achieve the connector 1 having high oil resistance.

In a connector 1 of a second aspect of the present disclosure, the cable10 includes a second cohesion unit 52 provided on a surface facing eachof the connector bodies 20, 30 and extending in a direction intersectingwith the extending direction of the cable 10, and is fixed to the coverunit 40 so as to be detachable by cohesive fracture.

According to the connector 1 of the second aspect, the second cohesionunit 52 makes it possible to prevent oil from entering the inside ofeach of the connector bodies 20, 30 through the space between the cable10 and the cover unit 40 for a longer time, and achieve the connector 1having higher oil resistance.

In a connector 1 of a third aspect of the present disclosure, the cable10 includes a protrusion 51 extending from the surface of the insulation12, adjacent to the first cohesion unit 13 in the extending direction ofthe cable 10, in the direction intersecting the extending direction ofthe cable 10. The protrusion 51 includes the second cohesion unit 52disposed on the side surface of the protrusion 51 facing the connectorbody 20, and a third cohesion unit 53 provided on the surface excludingthe side surface of the protrusion 51 facing the connector body 20, andfixed to the cover unit 40 so as to be detachable by cohesive fracture.

According to the connector 1 of the third aspect, by providing theprotrusion 51 that includes the second cohesion unit 52 and the thirdcohesion unit 53, it is possible to prevent oil from entering the insideof each of the connector bodies 20, 30 through the space between thecable 10 and the cover unit 40 for a longer time, and achieve theconnector 1 having higher oil resistance.

In a connector 1 of a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, the firstcohesion unit 13 is disposed apart from the end 121 of the insulation 12at each of the one ends 101, 102 of the cable 10 along the extendingdirection of the cable 10.

According to the connector 1 of the fourth aspect, regardless of thecutting accuracy at the end 121 of the insulation 12 of the cable 10,the first cohesion unit 13 can be accurately disposed at a desiredposition.

By appropriately combining any of the various embodiments ormodifications described above, the effects of the respective embodimentsor modifications can be achieved. In addition, a combination ofembodiments, a combination of modifications, or a combination of anembodiment and an modification is possible, and a combination offeatures in different embodiments or examples is also possible.

Although the present disclosure has been fully described in connectionwith the preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanyingdrawings, various variations and modifications will be apparent to thoseskilled in the art. It is to be understood that, so long as notdeparting from the scope of the present disclosure as set forth in theappended claims, the variations and modifications as thus described areincluded therein.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The connector of the present disclosure is applicable to, for example,an automobile machine tool.

DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE SIGNS

-   1. connector-   10. cable-   101. first end-   102. second end-   11. conductor-   12. insulation-   121. end-   13. cohesion unit (example of first cohesion unit)-   20. first connector body-   21. housing-   22. terminal-   30. second connector body-   40. cover unit-   50. recess-   51. protrusion-   52. first additional cohesion unit (example of second cohesion unit)-   53. second additional cohesion unit (example of third cohesion unit)-   CL. center line

1. A connector comprising: a cable that comprises a conductor and aninsulation covering the conductor; connector bodies that are provided onone ends in an extending direction of the cable, and on an inside ofwhich a terminal connected with the conductor of the cable is housed;and a cover unit that covers and integrates each of the one ends of thecable and each of the connector bodies, wherein the cable comprises afirst cohesion unit provided on a surface of the insulation at each ofone ends over an entire circumference around the extending direction ofthe cable, and fixed to the cover unit so as to be detachable bycohesive fracture.
 2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein thecable comprises a second cohesion unit provided on a surface facing eachof the connector bodies and extending in a direction intersecting withthe extending direction of the cable, and is fixed to the cover unit soas to be detachable by cohesive fracture.
 3. The connector according toclaim 2, wherein the cable comprises a protrusion extending from thesurface of the insulation, adjacent to the first cohesion unit in theextending direction of the cable, in the direction intersecting theextending direction of the cable, the protrusion comprises the secondcohesion unit disposed on the side surface of the protrusion facing theconnector body, and a third cohesion unit provided on a surfaceexcluding the side surface of the protrusion facing the connector body,and fixed to the cover unit so as to be detachable by cohesive fracture.4. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the first cohesion unitis disposed apart from an end of the insulation at each of the one endsof the cable along the extending direction of the cable.